1000+ images about Arbella Stuart b.1575 on Pinterest | Grandmothers, Portrait and England Forward Margaret Douglas died on 7 March 1578. She was interred in Henry VII's Chapel, at Westminster Abbey. Her daughter-in-law, Mary was executed on 8 February 1587, at the Great Hall of Fotheringhay Castle, in Northamptonshire. When Elizabeth I, Queen of England and Ireland (1533- 603) died on 24 March 1603, Mary and Henry Stuart's son, Margaret's grandson, James VI of Scotland, became James I of England. He was the first King of both Scotland and England. See More Henry STUART (E. Darnley) Henry STUART Born: 7 Dec 1545, Temple Newsham, Yorkshire, England Acceded: 1565 Died: 10 Feb 1567, Provost's House, Kirk o'the Field, Edinburgh, Scotland Buried: Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland Notes: Duke of Albany 1565, Earl of Ross, Lord Ardmannoch.

The Complete Peerage vol.VII,p.600. Married: MARY STUART (Queen of Scotland) 29 Jul 1565, Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh, Scotland Children: 1. JAMES I STUART (King of Great Britain) Darnley, painted by an unknown artist Scottish National Portrait Gallery Husband of Mary, Queen of Scots , was the son of Matthew Stuart, 4ï¿½ Earl of Lennox , and lady Margaret Douglas , daughter of Margaret Tudor , Queen of James IV of Scotland, by her second husband, Archibald, Earl of Angus; this made Darnley a candidate for succession to the English throne after Elizabeth I . He was born in England in 1546, and brought up there, where his father was in exile. In 1565, at the age of 19, he was allowed by Queen Elizabeth to follow his father to Scotland, and within a short time he was married to Mary , at Holyrood House, on 29 Jul 1565. The motives of the Scottish Queen were predominantly political; Darnley was a Catholic and his right of succession to the English throne reinforced Mary 's own.

However, the handsome appearance and courtly manners of the dissolute, spoiled and arrogant young man must also have impressed Mary because at first she was infatuated with him. Historians have speculated that Darnley was allowed by Elizabeth to go to Mary 's court because she foresaw Mary 's infatuation, and did not doubt her ability to control Mary and Scotland through the weak-willed Darnley. But Elizabeth reckoned without the stubborn royal character of her Scottish cousin. The alliance was offensive both to Elizabeth and to the Scottish reformers. Within a short time Darnley had shown himself to be a vicious and dissipated man. Most nights he roamed the streets of Edinburgh with low-life companions in search of sexual adventures. He failed to participate in the business of the royal court. Mary refused to ask Parliament to grant him the crown matrimonial, making him a king in title but not in influence. Darnley was soon after induced to side with the reformers, and sharing their dislike and jealousy of David Rizzio, the Queen 's secretary. The more outraged Mary became over her husband's stupidity and lewd behaviour, the more she looked to Rizzio for consolation.

Some of the nobles claimed that Rizzio was a secret agent of the Pope and had usurped their proper places beside the Queen . They easily cajoled the gullible Darnley into believing that Mary and Rizzio were lovers. Wounded in pride and suspicious of Mary 's relationship with Rizzio, Darnley joined a conspiracy against him. On 9 Mar 1566, Darnley and a group of nobles seized Rizzio in the Queen 's presence and stabbed him some 56 times. It is unclear whether Darnley himself did the dragging or the stabbing or whether one of his henchmen performed the actual slaughter. They may have hoped simultaneously to shock the six months pregnant Queen into fatal illness. She was then taken prisoner by the lairds, but managed to convince Darnley that he was only tolerated by them as an expedient to their plans, and would be done away with in his turn. Mary and Darnley managed to escape, and rode off through the darkness to safety. Darnley soon found himself without a friend in either camp. Between the Queen and Darnley thenceforth there was nothing but, irreconcilable aversion and disgust.

A divorce was proposed, but Mary would not agree to it. Meanwhile the Earl of Bothwell had won the favour or the Queen . Possibly with Mary 's knowledge, there was then formed a plot to murder Darnley, one of whose leaders was Bothwell. The Earl of Morton was later executed for his part in it, and others may have had a hand. Henry Stuart, Baron Darnley, at age 17, and his younger brother Charles, after Earl of Lennox, at age 6 by Hans Eworth by Hans Eworth By the time Mary gave birth to Lord Darnley's son in Jun 1566, her husband had backslid into a life of debauchery, neglecting his royal duties and displaying a sullen resentment towards Mary 's relationship with Bothwell. In his frustration, Darnley took to thwarting his wife in every way possible, publicly insulting her and complaining loudly to others of his mistreatment, and immersing himself in the fleshpots of Edinburgh and the other cities of Scotland. His wenching and drinking and gaming caused great humiliation to his wife and to the Scottish government.

Engraving of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, and her second husband, Lord Darnley Drawing of the scene of Kirk oï¿½Field after the murder of lord Darnley Public Record Office London By spring of 1566 Darnley was even rumored to be writing to the Pope and the French and Spanish kings with accusations of his wife's laxity in restoring the Catholic faith in Scotland - though his own adherance to Catholicism was nominal. Mary 's council, religiously divided, could nevertheless not afford a King who behaved so irresponsibly as to complain about the Queen to other monarchs. A meeting was held at Craigmillar on 20 Nov 1566 to discuss what might be done about the situation. Mary hesitated to divorce Darnley or to annull the marriage, fearing the effect on her son's legitimate claim to succeed her. Her councillers, among them the Earl of Bothwell, assured her that the situation would be resolved without resorting to such risky acts. Mary , in a deep depression, spoke of her desire to die or to give up the throne and retire to France, but her council promised that such drastic measures would be unnecessary.

But when the Queen learned he was seriously ill in Glasgow, she travelled to his bedside and later arranged for a horse-litter to carry him back to Edinburgh. Darnley, convalescing from either smallpox or syphilis, arrived in Edinburgh early in 1567 and lodged in Kirk o' Field, a house just outside the city. Across the city Queen Mary and the baby prince were safely ensconced at Holyrood House. Unknown to Darnley, miscreants had for some time been packing the cellars of Kirk o' Field with enough gunpowder to blow the structure to smithereens. On the night of 9 Feb around two am, after a visit from Mary , the house was blown up by gunpowder, a blast heard and felt throughout Edinburgh. In the morning the bodies of Darnley and a page were found in an adjoining garden beside a pear tree. Darnley's nightgown-clad corpse appeared not to have been killed by the explosion but by strangulation. Details of the murder remain a historical mystery. Historians speculates that Darnley had tried to escape just before the blast but had been intercepted by his murderer before he could flee.

Mary 's subsequent failure to punish Bothwell and her hasty marriage to him led to the revolt that soon dethroned her. Darnley was the father of James I of England. Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, 2nd husband of Mary, Queen of … | Flickr Lisby By: Lisby Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, 2nd husband of Mary, Queen of Scots Henry Stuart, 1st Duke of Albany (7 December 1545 – 10 February 1567), commonly known as Lord Darnley, was a Prince Consort of Scotland, the first cousin and second husband of Mary I, Queen of Scots, and the father of her son King James VI, who also succeeded Queen Elizabeth I as King James I of England. Darnley was born in 1545, at Temple Newsam, Leeds, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England, the son of the 4th Earl of Lennox, and his wife, Margaret Douglas.

His father lived in exile in England for 22 years, returning to Scotland in 1564.[1] Darnley was related to his future wife in at least four ways: they shared a grandmother in English princess Margaret Tudor (Mary descending from Margaret's marriage to James IV of Scotland, Darnley from Margaret's marriage to Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus), putting both Mary and Darnley high in the line of succession for the English throne; Darnley was a descendant of a daughter of James II of Scotland and thus also in line for the throne of Scotland; both were descendants of Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland (Mary through Joan's marriage to James I of Scotland, Darnley through her marriage to Sir James Stewart, the Black Knight of Lorn); and Darnley's family surname was due to a much more ancient connection to his male-line ancestor, Alexander Stewart, 4th High Steward of Scotland. The marriage took place on Sunday 29 July 1565,[2] in the Chapel-Royal of Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

On the 30 July Darnley was given the title of King of Scots at a proclamation published at the Cross of Edinburgh,[3] but he was King Consort only, with no royal powers. His marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots, was a disaster. Darnley was three years younger than Mary (their birthdays were only a day apart) and not particularly mature. He was unpopular with the other nobles and had a mean and violent streak, aggravated by a drinking problem.[4] Within a short time, Mary became pregnant, but Darnley grew more and more demanding. His jealousy of Mary's private secretary, David Rizzio, by whom it was said that Mary had become pregnant, culminated in the bloody murder of the latter by Darnley and a group of his supporters, in the presence of the queen herself at The Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh. Archibald Douglas, Parson of Douglas, subsequently secured pardons for all those involved. Following the birth of their son, the future James VI, the succession was more secure; in late 1566 and early 1567, Darnley and Mary appeared to be close to reconciliation, as she was often seen visiting his chambers.

But Darnley was unpopular and petulant and offended many who should have been his natural supporters, and Mary became frustrated at his insistence that he be awarded the Crown Matrimonial. There was also some evidence that he suffered from syphilis.[4] On 10 February 1567, the bodies of Darnley and his servant at the time were discovered in the gardens of the Hamiltons' house, Kirk o' Field, Edinburgh, where they had been staying. Darnley was dressed only in his nightshirt, suggesting he had fled in some haste from his bedchamber. A violent explosion had occurred that night at the house, but the evidence pointed to Darnley escaping attempted assassination, only to be murdered when he got outside. There was strong evidence that Darnley and his valet had been strangled and that the explosion was set as an attempt to cover up the murders. Suspicion fell on the Earl of Bothwell and his supporters, notably Archibald Douglas, Parson of Douglas, whose shoes were found at the scene, and upon Mary herself. Bothwell later "abducted" Mary, and held her for a week, at the end of which she agreed to marry him.

Darnley's death was a key event in the downward spiral that led to her loss of the Scottish crown. Done BBC - History - Mary, Queen of Scots, and her lover Print this page The petted princess On the night of February 9 1567, a trail of gunpowder was lit in the cellar of a house in the backstreets of Edinburgh. The explosion reduced the house to rubble and Lord Darnley, the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, was murdered. Ever since, historians have debated whether Mary was involved in this outrage, and only recently has incriminating new evidence come to light. At the heart of the mystery lies treacherous politics of the Scottish Court, and love letters written by Mary to her secret paramour, James Hepburn, the Earl of Bothwell. ...she knew little of the affairs of state and had neither the temperament nor training for rule. Mary left Scotland when she was just five to be betrothed to the four year-old Dauphin, Francis. She was already Queen of Scotland because her father, James V, had died when she was just six days old, leaving her French Catholic mother, Mary of Guise, acting as Regent.

She eventually married Francis when she was 15 years old. A year later, following his father's untimely death in a jousting accident, Francis became King of France and she his Queen. But a year after that, Francis died of a brain tumour and his young widow had no option but to return to Scotland. Her ill-fated rule began in August 1561, she was just 18 and already widowed, a petted princess of the French court who knew nothing of her native country. The Scottish court was much smaller than its French counterpart, then the most sophisticated in Europe, and Scotland was generally less appealing with its wild weather, harsh landscape and tribal politics. She spoke mostly French and was fond of typical courtly pursuits like dancing, masking, music and embroidery. She was also an expert rider, courageous, spirited and headstrong - some said frivolous - and used to getting her own way. But she knew little of the affairs of state and had neither the temperament nor training for rule. Top Surrounded by enemies Mary's greatest handicap, however, was her religion: she was a Catholic in a country that was officially Protestant.

The leading Protestant lord was Mary's half-brother, the Earl of Moray, who had deposed her mother in 1559. Moray was the bastard son of James V and could never be King of Scotland. Instead he became Regent and Scotland became Protestant. So when Mary arrived, she was surrounded by enemies, not least John Knox, the fiery Protestant preacher, who made regular attacks on her from the pulpit, calling her a jezebel and a heretic, and denouncing her loose French ways. Yet, for the first two years of her personal rule, things went rather well because Mary was young and inexperienced and followed the advice of Moray and the Protestant lords. ...the recent discovery of secret reports from Thomas Randolph, the English Ambassador to the Scottish Court, indicates a much earlier intimacy. One of Mary's closest advisors at this time was the Earl of Bothwell, a tough, handsome border lord who was five years her senior. Bothwell was officially Protestant because you had to be to get on. On the other hand he had stayed loyal to Mary's mother during the rebellion of 1559 and he now served Mary with the same devotion.

He was, first and foremost, a nationalist who wanted a strong and independent Scotland. His chief aim was to prevent an alliance with England - Protestant England - because he saw it as the first step to political union. Historians have tended to assume that Bothwell did not exert any significant influence over Mary until 1565. But the recent discovery of secret reports from Thomas Randolph, the English Ambassador to the Scottish Court, indicates a much earlier intimacy. In October 1561, for example, he reported that Bothwell was 'near sybbe unto her grace', which means they were close friends (though not necessarily lovers). Moray resented Bothwell's influence and took advantage of his feud with the Earl of Arran to imprison him in 1562. Bothwell escaped and fled to France, at which point Moray persuaded Mary to put down a supposed rebellion by Bothwell's friend, the Earl of Huntly, in the Catholic north-west of Scotland. Top Bothwell's continuing influence Lord Darnley - the fly in the ointment © Why did she do it? Because she was determined to succeed Elizabeth I as Queen of England.

She was a legitimate great-granddaughter of Henry VII, which Elizabeth, as the daughter of Anne Boleyn, was not. Moray had promised her that if she crushed the Huntly rebellion Elizabeth would look favourably on her claim - and she believed him. But even with Huntly dead, Elizabeth refused to meet her. Mary had trusted her older half-brother, but he had simply used her to destroy a personal enemy and, in the process, further the Protestant cause. It was a turning point; Mary no longer trusted Moray and the Protestant lords and now turned, or returned, to the Catholic ticket. It is generally believed that Bothwell was absent from Scotland during the crucial next two years when Mary began to take matters into her own hands. But Randolph's reports point unexpectedly to Bothwell's continuing influence. In February 1564, Randolph reported to William Cecil that Bothwell had returned secretly to Scotland 'to speak to the Queen'. The upshot of meetings such as this one was that Mary chose Henry, Lord Darnley, as her new husband. Like her, he was a great-grandchild of Henry VII with a Scottish father, the Earl of Lennox, and an English mother who was also a leading Catholic.

By marrying Darnley, Mary hoped to strengthen the Catholic cause and enhance her claim to the English throne. The wedding took place at the Chapel Royal at Holyrood on 29 July 1565, Mary wearing black, as befitted a widow. Moray and some of the Protestant lords rebelled in protest, but were eventually driven into England by royal troops led by the Earls of Lennox and Bothwell, the latter having been recalled from France for the occasion. Bothwell was now at the height of his powers, a leading member of Mary's new - and largely Catholic - council. The only fly in the ointment was Darnley. He spent little time with the Queen and even less on the affairs of state, preferring to hunt, hawk, drink and keep low company. Gradually the Queen fell out of love. But Darnley had done one thing right: Mary was pregnant. Top Alone and defenceless The remaining Protestant lords saw Darnley as the weak link. They told him that Mary's Italian secretary, a former musician named David Rizzio, had too much influence at court. And why? Because he was Mary's lover.

The jealous and gullible Darnley believed them, and agreed to take part in Rizzio's murder. He also agreed to uphold the Protestant religion, and to the return from exile of the other Protestant lords. There has never been any evidence that Mary was having an affair with Rizzio. If she had been, Randolph would have known, yet he does not mention it in any of his reports to Cecil. She spent days in her chamber weeping, close to nervous collapse. Nevertheless, on 9 March 1566, Mary was having a small supper party in her private apartments, with Rizzio and five close friends, when Darnley and a group of Protestant nobles burst in. They dragged Rizzio from the table and into the next room - where they stabbed him 56 times. Bothwell had also been a target, but he managed to climb out of a window and descape to Dunbar. Alone and defenceless, Mary decided that her only hope was Darnley. Two nights after the murder she went to his room and convinced him that the Protestant lords were using him. Soon he was begging her forgiveness and together they escaped to Dunbar, where Bothwell was gathering an army.

They returned to Edinburgh with the army and forced the murderers to flee. But Mary never really recovered. She spent days in her chamber weeping, close to nervous collapse. 'I could wish to be dead', she repeated again and again. She could never forgive Darnley. The only person she now trusted was Bothwell. On 19 June 1566, Mary gave birth to Prince James (later King James VI of Scotland, and I of England). Darnley was now expendable and everyone wanted to see the back of him: Mary hated him, the Protestant lords had been betrayed by him and Bothwell wanted to replace him as king. To further his ends, Bothwell persuaded Mary to bring back Moray and the exiled Protestants. Top 'Nothing against her honour' In November 1566, Bothwell met with nobles from all factions at Craigmillar Castle to discuss the Darnley problem. They came up with two options: divorce or assassination. But when Mary was consulted she ruled out divorce because it would make her son illegitimate. As for 'other means', she said that she wanted 'nothing against her honour'.

The nobles saw this as carte blanche and, having left Mary's room, signed a bond to murder Darnley. Even her defenders find it hard to believe she knew nothing of the plan to abduct her. So was Mary in on the plot? It seems likely because, in January 1567, she joined Darnley in Glasgow and was, as he told his father, 'using herself as a most natural and loving wife'. And yet it was from Glasgow that she sent her famous love letters - known as the Casket Letters - to Bothwell while her husband was just yards away in the next room. 'Cursed be this poxy fellow that troubeleth me this much,' she wrote. 'He will not come unless I promise to be with him at bed and board and forsake him no more. And upon my word he will do whatsoever I will, and he will come.' Mary was as good as her word. On 1 February 1567 she brought Darnley from the safety of Glasgow to the dangers of Edinburgh. He was taken to Kirk o'Field, a house near the city wall, because he was sick and, Mary said, needed somewhere quiet to convalesce.

Mary promised to stay and look after him but on the night of the murder, 9 February, she was at Holyrood attending the wedding masque of a loyal servant. A coincidence? Possibly, but a convenient one. As it happened, Darnley survived the explosion but was strangled and stabbed to death as he tried to escape. Virtually everyone was involved in the plot to murder Darnley, but only Bothwell and Mary got the blame. Within days, scurrilous placards appeared in Edinburgh, depicting Mary as a whore and accusing her and Bothwell of the crime. They had been set up by Moray and the Protestant lords. In desperation, Bothwell abducted Mary and took her captive to Dunbar Castle where, apparently, he raped her before forcing her to agree to marry him. Could she have been complicit in the whole thing? Possibly. Even her defenders find it hard to believe she knew nothing of the plan to abduct her. Top Elizabeth's prisoner On 15 May 1567, Mary and Bothwell were married at Holyrood according to the Protestant rites.

Mary was either so desperate - or so madly in love with Bothwell - that she now appeared to give up even her Catholicism for him. Exactly a month later, the final showdown between Mary and the Protestant lords took place at Carberry Hill near Edinburgh. But no actual fighting took place because Mary's outnumbered troops gradually melted away. Mary agreed to give herself up on condition that Bothwell was given safe passage into exile. In a final act of defiance they kissed in full view of both sides. Then Bothwell galloped off and spent the next month trying, in vain, to raise more troops; so maybe he loved Mary after all. The young queen with the golden future was just 24, and her life was effectively over. But it was to no avail. Two days after Carberry, Mary was imprisoned on the isle of Lochleven where she later miscarried Bothwell's twins. The young Queen with the golden future was just 24, and her life was effectively over. Her half-brother Moray became Regent. Bothwell fled, but was caught and imprisoned in Protestant Denmark. He died there ten years later, some say insane.

For Mary there began 19 years of captivity, first in Scotland and then in England, ending only with her execution at Fotheringhay, for plotting against Elizabeth I, on 8 February 1587. The Enigma of Mary Stuart by IB Cowan (1971) Mary, Queen of Scots by George Donaldson (1975) Mary, Queen of Scots by Antonia Fraser (2001) In the End is My Beginning: A Life of Mary, Queen of Scots by James Mackay (1999) Two Queens in One Isle by Alison Plowden (1984) Mary, Queen of Scots: Politics, Passion and a Kingdom Lost by Jenny Wormald (2001) Links The last letter of Mary, Queen of Scots is reproduced on the National Library of Scotland site. The The Royal Family's site has a biography of Mary.

Places to visit Top About the author Dr Saul David is the author of several critically-acclaimed history books, including The Indian Mutiny: 1857 (shortlisted for the Westminster Medal for Military Literature), Zulu: the Heroism and Tragedy of the Zulu War of 1879 (a Waterstone's Military History Book of the Year) and, most recently, Victoria's Wars: The Rise of Empire. He was recently appointed Visiting Professor of History at the University of Hull. Husbands James Hepburn, Lord Bothwell Francis II, born 19th January 1544, King of France, was the oldest son of Henry II and Catherine de M�dicis. Francis married Mary, Queen of Scots on 24th April 1558. After succeeding to the throne in 1559 Francis came under the influence of Mary's powerful Guise relatives who sought to destroy the French Protestants or Huguenots. The ensuing persecution provoked the Huguenot Conspiracy of Amboise (1560), a plot to abduct Francis and arrest his Guise mentors.

The plan was discovered and the incipient rebellion bloodily crushed, but Francis's death curtailed Guise influence. Mary was but a girl of 15 when she married Francis with whom she had been brought up. Francis, a year younger, adored Mary and she bore him a strong sisterly affection. He was a weak and sickly child, and it is unlikely that the marriage was ever consummated. Francis fell ill with an ear infection in November 1560 and was dead by 5th December, just over two and a half years after their union. Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, born 7th December 1545 at Temple Newsham in Yorkshire, was the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. The second son of Matthew, 4th Earl of Lennox and Lady Margaret Douglas, who was the daughter of Margaret Tudor (sister of Henry VIII) with her second husband, Archibald, 6th Earl of Angus.

Darnley's father had originally hoped to marry Mary of Guise (Mary, Queen of Scots' mother) whom he had been sent by the French king to help against the English, but had subsequently changed his loyalties when the marriage was not forthcoming, and sworn allegiance to Henry VIII in exchange for his niece's hand. Darnley's mother had been the pawn in the bitter dispute between her own mother and father, and the victim of her paranoid uncle Henry. She had been a model of diplomacy at the English court where her mother had left her, juggling the favours of Henry's successive wives, while keeping her own head on her shoulders. After having been imprisoned for falling in love without her uncle's permission and seeing her lover die in jail, she was unexpectedly restored to Henry's good books and allowed to marry a man who, though not her soul mate, was nevertheless handsome and promising enough. Their first child, also named Henry Stuart, died shortly after birth and in their second child, both parents poured all their dreams and ambitions.

Darnley's father aspired to the Crown of Scotland, as he was descended from James II through the marriage of his grand-father (Matthew Stewart, the 2nd Earl of Lennox) to James's grand-daughter, Elizabeth, a claim which his rival, James Hamilton 2nd Earl of Arran, would contradict time and time again, as his father (James Hamilton 1st Earl of Arran) was Elizabeth's brother. Darnley's mother, besides being Henry VIII's niece, was also half-sister to James V of Scotland through her mother's first marriage to James IV. Imprisoned by her uncle, then promised the Crown of England for her heir, a promise promptly broken by Henry's will, Margaret's hopes soared again when Mary Tudor, her lifelong friend, took over after the death of Henry's son, Edward VI. Mary I however, while showing great generosity to Darnley and his parents, wanted her own heir to inherit the English Crown.

As Mary I died childless, Darnley's parents once more coveted a royal future for their son, wishing either the death of Mary's half-sister Elizabeth Tudor, or that of Mary, Queen of Scots' French husband, Francis II over the water. As it happened, it was the latter plan which came to fruition. Darnley met Mary twice before becoming her suitor. He was sent clandestinely to France by his parents in 1559 after the death of Mary's father-in-law, Henry II. He spent some time at Chambord where the French court was at that moment, under the protective wing of his paternal uncle John Stuart d'Aubigny, who had remained in France. Darnley was not yet thirteen and carried with him a letter from his father, in which he pleaded to have his forfeited Scottish estates restored. This was nothing but a formal audience with Mary, but a subtle way of introducing young Darnley on the scene. In 1560, when Francis II died in his turn leaving Mary a widow, Darnley was once more sent over to offer his parents' condolences.

There is no evidence that Mary regarded Darnley as a suitable choice for a new husband at that point, and her attentions were directed towards Don Carlos of Spain. Meanwhile, Elizabeth I who had always regarded the Lennoxes with extreme suspicion, found out that they had been sending their son abroad behind her back and had them arrested. Darnley though, managed to slip away to France where he stayed for about a year. However, the tide soon turned again in the Lennoxes' favour. Elizabeth who had almost died of smallpox was faced with the thorny issue of her succession and preferred the claim of the Lennoxes for their son, rather than that of the Suffolk line, the spectre of the Grey family (grand-daughter of Elizabeth's aunt, Mary, the other sister of Henry VIII). Margaret and Matthew were released and Darnley returned to England in 1563, while Lennox was allowed to travel to Scotland to obtain the restitution of his estates. Elizabeth's attitude towards Mary's marriage negotiations was ambiguous to the extreme. First she made it plain that she would consider her an enemy of England, should she marry into a foreign power such as Spain.

Then, she put forward her favourite Robert Dudley, a man lacking in royal blood, related to convicted criminals, suspected of his wife's death and rumoured to be Elizabeth's lover. It is clear that she never expected Mary to accept her choice of husband for her, and negotiations were brought to an end when Elizabeth refused to name Mary as her successor in exchange. However, at the same time, she allowed Darnley to join his father in Scotland for "legal matters". On 17th February 1565, Darnley arrived at Wemyss Castle in Fife, where he met up with Mary for the third time. Did Mary fall in love with Darnley or was it just a political match which backfired? The question has been much debated in favour of one or the other theory, and here again, the truth probably lies somewhere in between. As a matter of fact, Darnley and Mary had an awful lot in common. Not only were they both considered extremely attractive people, young and unusually tall for the era (both were over 6 feet tall), but they had received the same education and shared the same taste in many areas.

Darnley was an accomplished dancer and sportsman, could play the lute, converse with Mary in her native Scot as well as in her preferred French, understand Latin and write verses. His ambitious parents had taken care to provide him with an education fit for a king in the making. Furthermore, Darnley and Mary both shared a claim to the English throne as well as a common Scottish ancestor. Throughout their childhood and adolescence they had been both doted on, pampered and praised, one leading a sheltered existence at the French court and the other at his parents' home in Yorkshire. The only romantic attachment Mary had known so far was with a sickly immature boy of 15 for whom she had had no more than sisterly affection. His untimely death had robbed them of the possibility of turning this relationship into a marital one, and since then, Mary had only considered marriage in the context of a political exercise. What must this 24 year old full of life and health have thought when she found herself suddenly wooed by this good-looking, cultured peer who benefited from being an English subject and having strong royal connections of his own?

Undeniably, she must have welcomed the opportunity of solving the problem of her marital status by marrying a man she felt attracted to, a rare thing for a Queen in those days. At first Mary did seem to take offence to Darnley's early proposal of marriage, but soon after Elizabeth's refusal to pronounce herself on her succession until she had made up her mind about getting married herself, there was no stopping Mary from wedding Darnley. She wrote impulsive letters in which she asked for Elizabeth's permission to marry Darnley, and then subsequently told her that she would marry him with or without her consent. This latter letter was intercepted by Mary's Secretary, Maitland of Lethington out of diplomatic concerns, which caused a breach in their relationship. Darnley had lost the favour of the Earl of Moray by asserting that he owned too many estates, and his violent outbursts were cracking the veneer of his persona. Darnley had been confined to his bed due to an unusually long spell of the measles, which in view of his later illness, tends to suggest that he may have already suffered from the first signs of syphilis.

Mary, blind to this personality change, spent long hours at his bedside in the intimacy of his private chamber. By May 1565, Darnley had made a full recovery. Darnley and Mary were married in a short Catholic ceremony on 29th July 1565. However, the contractual part of the marriage was probably completed in secret on 9th of the same month. Mary did not wait for the papal dispensation necessary for their marriage as they were related, and when it did arrive, it was luckily backdated so as to validate their union. Mary thus married Darnley hurriedly, bestowing titles upon him and issuing a coin in his honour, building up a group of supporters in the face of mounting opposition from Moray's party, and ignoring Elizabeth's orders. If she had hesitated before, Mary had now made it clear that she was not prepared to be dictated to as to her choice of husband; not by her advisers and relatives, nor by another monarch, nor indeed by the Church itself.

However, by the time the Earl of Moray and his accomplices had fled to England in October 1565 following the crush of their rebellion against Mary, known as the "Chaseabout Raid", the mood had changed. Mary, who had elevated Darnley to virtual King status before they were even married, and conferred upon him more authority than she may have had the right to, began to realise Darnley's true nature. If she had loved him, she now perceived that the feeling was not returned and that she was just the stepping stone to his own advancement. The Crown Matrimonial, which would have allowed Darnley to rule in Scotland should Mary have died childless, was his most cherished goal. In response to Mary curbing his authority or to any offence made to him, Darnley sulked disappearing for days on end either gallivanting throughout Scotland or frequenting establishments of ill-repute in Edinburgh with a bunch of equally dissolute youths. He did so little to partake in state affairs that a special seal bearing his signature was made to allow the ratifying of legal documents in his absence.

Her marriage to Darnley resulted in a loss of support for Mary, and Parliament attendance was at an all time low. The Lennox-Hamilton feud was intense, and without the advice of the exiled Lords, Mary now turned to the Earl of Bothwell, whom she had recalled from exile at the time of the Chaseabout Raid, in view of his deep-rooted hatred of the Earl of Moray. By her side too, was the ill-fated David Riccio, Mary's Secretary. When Mary fell ill in the autumn of 1565, Darnley was not at her bedside like she had been at his. In early December, Mary journeyed to Linlithgow in a litter. There, she met Darnley and broke what must have been very bad news to him: Mary was pregnant with their child. The birth of this child effectively robbed him of the opportunity of being King himself. Until then, Darnley's bad behaviour had been limited to frequent drunkenness and inciting others to excessive drinking, neglect of his duties as the Queen's consort, abusive treatment of Mary and reported sexual perversion.

The extent of Darnley's cruel nature though was just about to reveal itself with the murder of Rizzio at Holyroodhouse. This event says a lot not only about Darnley's character but also about the general morality of the Scottish nobility of the time. Understandably, Mary had been keeping Darnley at arm's length, having realised what a mistake she had made in marrying him. She had infuriated him by partly pardoning the Duke of Ch�telherault (his rival Hamilton) for his role in the Chaseabout Raid, and by placing too much trust and attention in her Secretary, the Italian David Rizzio, whom Darnley had liked at first. The rest of the exiled nobles were getting impatient in England and did not think much of the way the tide seemed to be turning in favour of the catholics again. Mary remained unapproachable but Darnley on the other hand was an easy target. His greed for the Crown Matrimonial which Mary kept refusing him and the deterioration of their relationship was a fertile ground for planting the seed of discord.

And so it came about that the nobles who had disapproved of Darnley's marriage to Mary, and rebelled against them, now signed a bond in which they pledged to help Darnley in obtaining the Crown Matrimonial in exchange for his protection. A suggestion that David Rizzio had stepped into his shoes whispered in Darnley's ear was all it took to win him to their side. But the level of cruelty inflicted on David and the way it was done was due to Darnley alone. Darnley insisted that David Rizzio be stabbed in the presence of the Queen, in the hope that she would miscarry. As it happened, Mary did not miscarry and Darnley's plot failed. To read Lord Ruthven's account of the murder of Rizzio, click here. Darnley did not stab Rizzio himself and the bond made no mention of the murder, but his culpability was no less certain. He held Mary down while the crime was being committed and his dagger was left in Rizzio's body.

Mary became a prisoner in her own home and Darnley, intimidated by the Lords began to lose his nerve and to plead with Mary, confessing that he had allowed them to return to Scotland to help him obtain the Crown Matrimonial, but maintaining that he had no idea that they intended to kill Rizzio. Mary then cleverly turned the situation to her advantage and with Darnley's cooperation, managed to escape to Dunbar where Bothwell and Huntly were waiting for them. Darnley, relieved to have saved his own skin and believing that Mary had genuinely forgiven him, made a victorious entry into Edinburgh and proclaimed his innocence in the Rizzio murder. On her return to Edinburgh, Mary reluctantly pardoned Moray, Argyll and Glencairn who were reconciliated with her supporters Bothwell, Huntly and Atholl. Morton, George Douglas, Ker of Fawdonside and Ruthven fled into exile in England but made sure that they sent Mary the bond in which Darnley had fully incriminated himself. There was no going back for Darnley at this point.

Mary kept a semblance of normality with Darnley to ensure that he would not prejudice her son's future by not acknowledging him as his son. However, as soon as James was born and that Darnley had made no attempt to deny his paternity, Mary shut him out again by devoting herself to her son. Darnley reverted to what he did best, drinking to excess, frequenting prostitutes, making a show of Mary and absenting himself for days on end. He was even known to swim on his own in the sea and lochs, a form of exercise which was not practised in those days, unless to escape death by drowning. But Darnley was once again about to seal his own fate by playing with fire. His self-inflicted isolation led him to seek his father's understanding, and plotting to regain his lost prestige. Spies in his household reported that his plans included seizing his son and ruling in his place as Regent, or a rebellion supported by England. Letters sent to the major Catholic powers and the Pope show how he was trying to discredit Mary by throwing doubt on her faith.

Darnley had become a real problem, and how to solve this problem was the object of the discussion which took place between the Lords coalition and Mary at Craigmillar. Mary, who had been very ill some time before, was recovering at Craigmillar. During an ambiguous conversation which was reported two years after the event, the Lords suggested "removing" Darnley. Mary was concerned about the effect a divorce would have on the legitimacy of her son, but declared that nothing should be done to taint her honour. It is generally deduced from those words that she meant that she knew that the Lords's intention was to assassinate Darnley and that it was fine as long as it could not be traced to her. The most that can be concluded though is that Mary did have foreknowledge of the plot against Darnley. Shortly after, the Lords signed a bond in which they undertook to prevent further harm from being committed by Darnley. On 12 December 1566, James was baptized in a lavish Catholic ceremony at Stirling Castle which Darnley, although on site, did not attend presumably to avoid the humiliation of being ignored by Elizabeth's representatives, who still refused to recognise him as King.

On 24 December, Mary pardoned the remainder of the Rizzio murderers (except for Ker of Fawdonside and George Douglas) allowing them to return to Scotland, as part of the bargain struck at Craigmillar. Darnley was not going to hang around to face those he had betrayed and took off to Glasgow to see his father. En route he fell ill and it was assumed that he had been poisoned. A later diagnosis however confirmed that he had small pox, which we now know was the later stages of syphilis. On 9th January 1567, Mary sent her physician to Glasgow to report on Darnley's health. By mid-January, Mary had removed her son from Stirling to the palace of Holyroodhouse, still fearing a plot by Darnley to seize him. The following week she set off for Glasgow to visit Darnley who received her in his sick bed full of repentance for his past behaviour, and pleading that they restore conjugal relations. Mary agreed in principle but on condition that he return to Edinburgh with her.

Darnley told her of the rumours he had heard concerning a plot to harm him and refused to be moved to Craigmillar Castle. Mary did not want Darnley at Holyroodhouse for fear of contagion and Darnley, who was still badly disfigured with the disease, did not want to be seen there either. A more salubrious environment was suggested to him, which he accepted. The site in question was the Old Provost's Lodging, south of the Cowgate and just within the city wall. They arrived at Kirk o' Field on the last days of January, and a semblance of the early days of their relationship seems to have revived. Mary furnished the Old Provost's Lodging as comfortably as possible and even stayed in the room below Darnley's a couple of nights. She paid him regular visits entertaining him in the company of some of the Lords, and within a week or so, Darnley was pronounced well enough to leave the following Monday. On the night of 9th February 1567, Mary should have spent the night there but had to return to Holyroodhouse to attend the final rejoicings of her favourite page's wedding.

Darnley is reported to have been annoyed at this and Mary gave him her ring until the next day as a token of her commitment to him. In the early hours of the morning, a huge explosion brought the Old Provost's Lodging down. Darnley's body and that of his servant William Taylor were found half-naked in the adjacent orchard, unmarked and lying beside some puzzling objects: a cloak, a dagger, rope and a chair. This incident which terminated the life of Darnley is one of the most intricate unsolved murder mysteries of all times. Although the full blame was thrown on Bothwell as the chief murderer and later Mary as his accomplice, there is no doubt that several groups of conspirators were involved, each playing a role which was semi-occulted from the rest. Those Lords who had signed the Craigmillar Bond (which later conveniently disappeared) most probably instigated the plot which was then discovered by Bothwell. Mary had Darnley's body embalmed and buried in the Abbey of Holyrood in the royal vault of James V. (The most detailed discussion of the murder of Lord Darnley can be found in the book by Major-General R. H.

Mahon, "The Tragedy of Kirk o' Field".) James Hepburn, 4th earl of Bothwell, born in 1536, was the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. During the Reformation era James supported the Protestant faction in Scottish politics. Nonetheless, in 1565 he helped the Roman Catholic Mary put down the earl of Moray's rebellion. After the murder (which Bothwell probably arranged) of Mary's second husband, Lord Darnley, at Kirk o' Field, Bothwell made preparations to wed Mary himself. In what is known as the "Ainslie Tavern Bond", Bothwell secured the approval of the Protestant Lords to a marriage with Mary. After abducting her with or without her consent, and allegedly raping her to rob her of any alternative, Bothwell married Mary on 15th May 1567 by Protestant rites. Soon after, a coalition of Protestant and Catholic nobles confronted the Queen and Bothwell at Carberry Hill outside of Edinburgh. Bothwell fled; he died insane on 14th April 1578 in his Danish prison. To read a translation of Bothwell's own version of the story, click here .

A lot has been said about the relationship between Mary and Bothwell, and although she relied on his influence and power at a time when she was ill, depressed and abandoned by all her advisers, it is not my opinion that Mary ever felt the passion for Bothwell that is often described. The Casket Letters are now commonly accepted to have been forgeries designed to besmirch Mary's character and make her the accomplice of Bothwell in the murder of Darnley. This was done at a time when Moray, Mary's treacherous half-brother, was keen to dissociate himself from the crime and to make sure that Mary would not return to Scotland from her prison in England, and take away the Regency he had coveted for so long. As such, the Casket Letters throw no light on Mary's relationship with Bothwell. The facts though, do. Her marriage to Bothwell was a speedy and squalid affair compared to her previous two weddings. No masques, lavish ceremony and rich presents but a simple meal which everyone ate in silence.

On the very day she got married to Bothwell, Mary told Du Croc that she had no desire to be merry, and to Leslie, she announced in floods of tears how much she regretted what she had done, especially her Protestant wedding. The next day, she was heard begging for a knife in front of her equerry Arthur Erskine, so that she may kill herself, and threatened to drown herself instead if he did not do as she wished. Besides Mary's desperate state of mind, Bothwell's attitude towards her was brutal. According to Melville, not a day passed without Mary crying because of the way he treated her. He was jealous, resented her happy nature and forbade her music, hawking and all her other pastimes, and used appalling language in her presence. Although he had had his marriage to Lady Jean Gordon annulled in order to marry Mary, Bothwell seemed to keep the relationship going, assuring Jean that Mary was just his concubine and that she remained his only wife.

Further, Bothwell's attitude towards women was notorious, from the blacksmith's daughter, Bessie Crawford who he seduced in a corner of the kitchen, Alison Craik, allegedly Arran's mistress, who he attempted to rape to take revenge on his enemy Arran, the distraught Anna Throndsen who he dumped after promising to marry her, to Janet Beaton, aunt of Mary Beaton one of the four Maries, a woman old enough to be his mother. After Mary saw Bothwell for the last time at Carberry Hill, she does not seem to have made any attempt at contacting him. Neither did she show any interest during her nineteen years of captivity in England. Are these the signs of a wild, passionate romance?

Question: Which English king was the son of Lord Darnley and Mary Queen of Scots?
Answer: James I